Employee Engagement Now
Posted by Doreen McGunagle on Fri, May 13, 2011 @ 07:00 AM
Growing Your Business | Global Strategic Management Solutions
Our author this time is Lee J. Colan, Ph.D. Dr. Colan is the author of 10 books, with most of them being translated into several languages. He is an expert in personal, team and organizational leadership. In addition to 25 years of hands-on industry and consulting experience, Lee earned Master's and Doctoral degrees in Industrial/Organizational Psychology.
Tell us about the prevailing themes in leadership right now.
I’m a big believer in stepping back and looking at broader trends. Over the past year, we have been seeing engagement concerns coming to the surface again. In the previous six months, we were seeing plenty of resources out there, because of supply and demand.
For example, if you are walking through the desert and see a puddle, you still are in the middle of the desert. Essentially, the broader trend is that there is much more demand than there is supply (of qualified employees). The leaders who are being proactive right now realize that there is still a desert, so they are focused on acquiring and engaging good talent.
How are organizations handling employee development differently than in the past?
Many companies are looking for workers who are further along in their careers. Employers are wondering how to effectively tap into them; maybe it’s not a traditional structure, but leaders are trying to soak some knowledge from them. Even though the young leaders are there with their energy, organizations don’t want to lose the skills and experience of the older employees.
Why are leaders grappling with employee engagement?
They know the concept, but are wondering what to do; the “how to” of employee engagement seems overwhelming or at best, unclear. This applies across the board.
Essentially, people are trying to deal with continuous, rapid change. Envision going into the ocean, where you get hit with one wave, and before you stand up, another one hits you again. This environment means that rapid learning and immediate application are important.
Lee Colan's latest title, Engaging the Hearts and Minds of All Your Employees: How to Ignite Passionate Performance for Better Business Results, can be purchased from Amazon.com.
Click here to learn more about creating a culture that embraces engaged employees.
